Deron Williams vs. Atlanta Hawks
IN PHOTO: Apr 27, 2015; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard Deron Williams (8) drives around Atlanta Hawks guard Kent Bazemore (24) during the first quarter in game four of the first round of the NBA Playoffs. at Barclays Center. REUTERS/Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports

The No. 1 vs. No. 8 match-up in the Eastern Conference was pegged as one of the easiest to call considering the Atlanta Hawks were the top seed and the Brooklyn Nets lucked into a postseason slot. Most of those basketball experts who shared that observation are now dead wrong after the Nets pulled off the 120-115 overtime victory in Game 4 tying the best-of-seven series at 2-2.

Deron Williams played like a vintage Deron Williams dropping a playoff career-high 35 points—more than half of which came from his impressive 7-of-11 shooting from behind the arc. The much-maligned point guard also added 5 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals in leading the eighth seeded Nets to the victory.

Williams was not the only one who impressed against the Hawks. Star centre Brook Lopez had a double-double of 26 points and 10 rebounds plus he also played good defence with 2 steals and 4 blocked shots. Veterans Joe Johnson, who was a former franchise player for the Hawks, had 17 points, Thaddeus Young had 10 points and rookie guard Bojan Bogdanovic chipped in 15 markers.

Paul Millsap, who finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds, slammed one home off a Jeff Teague assist with 16 seconds to go to tie the game and force the extra period. Teague had 11 assists in the game along with 20 markers. In overtime, the Nets simply played better outscoring the East’s top seed, 16-11 thanks to clutch baskets from Johnson and Bogdanovic.

The Hawks are known for their pinpoint passing and excellent team play. They ranked second in assists per game in the regular season and they showed that again with 27 assists in Game 4. However, Williams and company proved they can win on excellent team ball too; the team dished out 25 assists and had less turnovers than the Nets, 9-16.

In the post-game interviews, Williams admitted that this was a big win for the club and that this was perhaps his best game as a member of the Nets franchise. The Nets-Hawks series is now down to a best-of-three with Game 5 set on Wednesday in Atlanta.

The winner of this series will face the surging Washington Wizards led by veteran Paul Pierce, who are coming off an impressive sweep of the Toronto Raptors in their own first round best-of-seven affair.

To contact author of this article, email j.quizon@IBTimes.com.au.

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